An Italian Road Trip, in Pictures

I thought I’d document what happened once an hour to give you a sense of the trip, with my mobile phone (I’m hoping to get a new one with an awesome camera soon). Hope you enjoy!

5:30am.

We’d already been awake for some time, and on the road for a bit. This was our first important stop, at Italy’s ever-present Autogrills, for coffee. You can see the crumbs from other customers’ brioche/cornetti at my feet. Really needed that.

6:30am.

We’re officially no longer driving in the dark. The sunrise peeks over one of my favorite overpasses outside Reggio Emilia.

7:30am.

First gas-up. We have a car which runs on propane, and we have a small tank and have to stop more often. The sun is shining and all of the early morning freshness is now gone. It’s 23C (74F).

8:30am.

Breakfast. A few handfuls of pistachios followed this banana. Do you pack food when you travel or road trip? I do. I used to love buying food at the stops but now I enjoy shopping before and having good snacks on hand. Don’t you love the sunray on this heavenly banana?

9:30am.

Almost halfway through! Now we’re in Le Marche, a region I love driving through. I believe we’re near Loreto at this point.

10:30am

I fuel up with a Pocket Espresso to Go – the savior of all Italian drivers (picture not taken while driving).

11:30am.

Last gas-up. I get mesmerized by the brightness and the colors of the gas station. Enjoy a little Autogrill still life. Like the last .1 miles of the half-marathon I ran last month, the last hours seem the hardest. Maybe I’m a little sleep-deprived at this point.

12:30pm.

Almost there. Just a kilometer or so away is the sea. I’m back to being a passenger.

Loving coming along with you on this road trip! The Autogrill still charms me and I love stopping there for caffe along the way–and I get a kick out of shopping there–so different from USA. You can pick up Parmigiano and Extra Virgin Olive Oil, a far cry from what’s on the shelves as I drive up The 5 in California!

We went on a 3-week road trip from eastern Switzerland to Sicily with plenty of stops along the way. We thought it was the best way to see Italy! On the playlist: The Mars Volta, Rage Against the Machine, and Electric Six!

I LOVE road trips. I don’t have a car but once I do, I plan to take a lot of trips.

Last year I drove from Rome to Acqui Terme (well, I was molto stupido to rent a stick but I digress).

Music is a big deal and of course I had to together a playlist which included: Amy Winehouse (first CD Frank), Jamairoquai, Bob Marley, The Police, Beethoven, Stevie Wonder and Coltrane, and the Spice Girls.

I love road trips, what I really enjoy about it is you got to stop on some place where you can get a snack or whatever while loading your tank. And while on the road I love listening to acoustic mellow music.

Hello: I have been listening to the Eye on Italy podcast which seems to have disappeared. Can you enlighten me on what has happened.
I am interested in Travel to Italy with my wife early this summer – perhaps to the south and am looking for ideas.

@Malcolm – Thanks for commenting! We had to take a break for a while (we all have busy schedules & had to dedicate a bit more time to things that pay the bills) but I don’t think it’s gone forever. It may resurrect soon!